sound stage, balance, bass, musical and very nice looks.

May be bit too much bass for small apartment, no good remote.

Very nice! I've had thi sthing for a while and it really sounds great. First i thought it was too much music for my loudspeakers/interior, but finding a right balace it worth everythin!

Very musical, strong and very deep bass after break-in, warm sound, tons of detail with no signs at all of harshness or fatigure what so ever.

Don't be silly

Awesome Amp!!!!! Although for the first 5-6 days I was ready to return it. This amp needs a very long break-in before it opens up and when it does its absolutely awesome. It scares me to think that I almost returned this jewel. You will cheat yourself if you return it before 150 hours like I almost did. If you wait until it has 150 hours or more you will diffently keep it. Blows away every amp combo I've owned before which I have listed below. I prefer the CD output for DVD as it warms the sound better and the SACD output for my cd player, just a personal preference. I seem to get better detail with the SACD output on cds. Everything else has been said that needs to be said by previous reviewers. Highly Recommneded!!!!!!!!!! My system: Musical Fidelity A300 Dynaudio Audience 82, speakers Denon DCD-1560, Cd Player Analysis Plus cables, Inter. and Speaker

Similar Products Used:

Electrocompaniet ECI-4, Bryston B60, Manley Stingray(nice integrate though), Adcom GFA-555II with GFP-555II, listen to Krell seperates also

Sound....sweet sound. Build quality,looks great. It may not be fancy but I like having a remote control. Can drive inefficient speakers.

May not have enough power to drive ML Monoliths at THX levels in a football stadium.

This piece replaced an Adcom GFA-1A and GFP-1 pre-amp, units which were both over 20 years old. The Adcom combo sounded pretty good overall but the power amp could not drive my speakers at a high level for more than 10 minutes without going into thermal overload and shutting down(My speakers are ML AeriusI). Considered many alternatives, but for simplicityI decided on an integrated amp. The Krell 300 was nice but $$$. Read about the MF A300 and auditioned one. It sounded great at the demo but I was concerned about its ability to drive my speakers. As they say....'No worries mate'. This thing drives my speaker with no problem. All I can say is this unit exceeded my expectations in every way. Bass control is superior as well as any other audiophile parameter you can think of. Plus I no longer fear my amp will shutdown in the middle of a Stevie Ray Vaughn CD.

Detail, openness, value, soundstaging.

Lack of sleep from staying up late.

I purchased this unit to replace an Adcom GFA-5800 amp and McCormack Line Drive passive preamp unit. Although I liked the transparency of the combination It seemed a little edgy at the top end. I have owned the unit for about two months now. I broke it in for over 200 hours to ensure that it would get a fair shake in a comparison with my old setup. I agree with the vast majority of reviews previously posted about the clarity and openness of this unit. There is the nice smoothness available without the lack of precision and punch that can accompany a tubed setup. I have owned tubed gear before and have missed that sound but not the hassles and cost associated with it. I really feel this amp is a great solution. Also, I felt that the low end control was lacking especially with power hungry speakers like my Magneplanar 3.3R's. By the way, this amp is very capable of driving these with ease. The soundstage is terrific and combined with the detail and power it is the best sounding setup I have heard. The value is hard to beat in the market today. You will find yourself listening to music that you have neglected for a while just to hear it again. The only problem with this unit is trying to get to sleep at a decent hour. I find myself staying up late all the time to get some really FUN listening in. As regards to the "binding" posts; yeah, you can't get a spade on them but the banannas still pass plenty of amps very cleanly. I do not see any potential purchaser regretting a purchase of this unit. Have fun and enjoy music again. This amp can make you forget about listening for all the stuff that audiophiles obsess over because it takes care of everything so well. Associated equipment: Audio Alchemy CD Drive Musical Fidelity A3 DAC Kimber Kable PBJ Interconnects Krell speaker cable Magneplanar 3.3R speakers

Similar Products Used:

Adcom GFA-5800 McCormack line drive

Neutrality, power, authority, weight, build quality

Cosmetic -- I''m not a big fan of the gold knob. The binding posts are MONSTEROUS. They look cool but are a PAIN to use. Next time just use some good WBT''s Musical Fidelity!

I was sick of pouring money into mid-fi separates that never seemed to quite work well together. I love separates but I wanted to simplify my system. Then I read Sam Tellig''s review in Stereophile of the A300. It sounded like something I was looking for. A real high end integrated. When I first hooked it up the first thing I noticed was the additional weight that bass had. I was using a fairly beefy amp before the A300 but it added a lot to the bass. The midrange and treble were very clear as well. When I hooked this amp up to my speakers, I thought it sounded real laid-back. Real polite. What shocked me was when I tried a different pair of speakers. These speakers had a lot more sizzle to them. What I''m getting at is that I was surpirsed and just how neutral this amp is with different speakers. In other words, it really allows you to hear the different charastics of different speakers. When I originally mistook for the tonal character of the amp was actually the tonal character of the speakers. When I hooked up totally different speakers, the tonal differences of the 2 speakers really contrasted. The A300 isn''t bright, it isn''t dark. To me it''s just totally neutral as a good amp should be. Hook it up to bright speakers, they will sound bright. Hook it up to dark speakers, they will sound dark. I really haven''t had the chance to audition the A300 with some higher end speakers on the same level as the A300, only lower end stuff as my budget will allow right now. But considering how well it can handle low end stuff, I''m sure it would do really well with higher end speakers. My only complaints are minor. The gold knob looks fancy, but it''s a little over the top for me. I''d rather have a nice silver knob. The IEC power cord is too close to the binding posts, so it makes hooking up cables a pain. The binding posts are heavy duty, but way, WAY too big. There''s not a set of spades on the planet short of jumper cables that are wide enough to fit around the inside of the posts. I appreciate them trying to go high end with some nice binding posts, but I would have much rather had some good WBT posts that will take most spades and banannas. So my only real complaints are really just cosmetic and logistical. Sound-wise the A300 performs very well. There are some good comparable int. amps from Creek and Arcam in this range, but the A300

Similar Products Used:

Rotel, Carver, H/K amp and pre

attractive sound, good bass and mid range, no shrieking highs and feels and looks like an audiophile component.Preamp out for biamping potential

Sometimes light on depth, no spades to fit posts. A silver knob looks better than gold color

I went through quite a few listening auditions for an integrated amp and this a300 won me over in the end having an almost pure neutral character and decent clarity at above moderate listening volumes. I listen to classical symphonies and concertos wnd this machine can keep up to the dynamic swings without strain. It does not rebuild a soundstage with depth like separates can, but it gives you enough to please and sounds powerful. Some other brands in the approximate class can seem dry or thin sounding, whereas I found the a300 had solid bass and midrange delivery. Super performance with good interconnect and cd player

Similar Products Used:

diva 85, rotel ra 1070, mira, brio,b-60, classe cap101 & 151,nad 370

Dual-mono amplifier-drives my hybrids with ease. Build quality is excellent. Music,wonderful music.

May not drive Martin Logan Monoliths in a 50 x 100 room.

This unit recently replaced an aged Adcom separates system (GFT-1,GFP-1,GFA-1A)which provided many years of good performance. Although rated at 50W/ch less than my adcom amp, it drives a pair of Martin Logan Aerius I speakers with a sense of ease and authority the adcom could never match. It outperforms the old adcom set-up in just about every audiophile parameter you could think of. Another bonus of course is that it simplifies/reduces the amount of electronic hardware residing in the living room, rating a big plus from the mrs. Audition one, it will be worth the time. As for rating this wonderful piece of equipment---4 for performance since there is better out there, 5 for value since what is better out there will cost much much more. Overall rating--5

Musically engaging and detailed, with plenty of power and speed. Excellent soundstaging.

The remote does not complement the rest of the system. I figured with such a well-crafted exterior that the remote would be equally as impressive.
The Nu-Vista speaker terminals are rather unusual.

I was starting my venture on becoming a true audio enthusiast, when I decided to make the leap from an integrated system to separates. My first purchase was to be a power amp. I have a Yamaha receiver which I was going to turn into a preamp/AV processor to be coupled with this new amp. I auditioned the various amps listed above. None of which felt "just right".

The NAD amps were very smooth and dynamic, but not as musically engaging as I had hope.
The Parasound amps were extremely powerful and dynamic, but a tad bit harsh, with some background hum which I could not eliminate despite various attempts.
The Rotel amps were extremely well-rated in the literature, but the dynamics and the soundstaging just didn't hit the spot.

I came across Musical Fidelity products from reading British mags (e.g. What HiFi, HiFi Choice). With their reputation in Britain and the "glamourous" review in Stereophile, I just had to audition the A300 piece.

I was quite overwhelmed by the experience. This piece is extremely warm and engaging, with excellent dynamics. Well controlled bass output and smooth midrange define this amp. The high-end roll off some folks have mentioned, I am not sure if I really hear that. I think I have pretty keen ears and do believe that there may have been slight roll off at the beginning. Not much of a problem at this time. Finally, the soundstaging is definitely there.

I was in the market for a power amp, and I came away with an integrated amp. Go figure. The excellent analogue input really made this purchase worthwhile.

Next purchase: Maybe biamping with the new A3CR amp. Let's save up first! Maybe new speakers as well.

FYI: My modest system in my modest apt (rent is expensive here)

Integrated amp: MF A300
Receiver: Yamaha 995 (becoming my tuner/ AV processor)
CD: Sony CDP XA20ES (fed directly to A300)
Speaker: Paradigm Reference Studio 20 (ver. 2, with cherry wood veneer finish)
Speaker cable: Audioquest Type 4+ (biwire)
Interconnect: Tributaries, Monster

For an entry level high-end sound (or even more than entry level), this is truly a high-quality piece at a very reasonable price. My system may seem a bit unorthodox; however, I think the MF has added a very good cohesion to my system. I am extremely happy with output of the system and would highly recommend MF A300 to anyone in the market for an integrated amp, or who would like to surpass their friends' system quality.

Similar Products Used:

NAD, Parasound, Rotel, Sony ES power amps.
Yamaha, Denon, Sony receivers.

Effortless sound, clarity and detail without being overly analytical. Very musical and natural.

Hmm, let me think.... OK, remote is cheap looking/feeling, and the Nu-Vista speaker terminals are so big I can barely get my speaker cables into them!

OK, so everybody likes to rate the equipment they own 5 stars, and in general I take these reviews with a large grain of salt. In the case of the A300, the five stars are without question well deserved. On an absolute scale, it is perhaps a 4 for overall rating, but I'd say you'd have spend some $5k to come close to besting it. I had previously owned a Golden Tube SE-40 power amp, which I loved for the sound, but didn't like having to bias the tubes manually every few months. When my pre-amp died, I looked around for a hassle-free integrated that was compatible with my tube-atuned ears, not expecting to find any. I listened to a number of integrateds, including a Cary ($2800) and a Krell (~$2300), and a few others in the $1500 price range. The Cary was wonderful sounding, though a bit light on bass and felt like it was smoothing things over too much. The Krell didn't do it for me at all - way too dry. The Arcam and the Thule were impressive, and I appreciated them but did not *enjoy* them. I saw the reviews here of the A300 and in Stereophile, and ordered a demo ($1200) from Audio Advisor. Right from the first 30 seconds I knew this was special. The ease of the sound is fantastic - not laid back by any means, but it just sounds so natural and right. It has the coherence and soundstaging of tubes, but with the detail and impact of solid state. Unlike the Cary it doesn't smooth things over, and it gives loads of detail without resorting to the dry sound of the Krell. It makes a great match with my Totem Model 1's. These are somewhat hard to drive speakers (though the SE-40 was also a good match), and the 150w/side makes them pay attention. The strengths of the amp and speakers are the same - dynamics (micro and macro), speed, detail, coherence, soundstaging. You won't go wrong with this amp. Call Audio Advisor before they bump the price, and I doubt you'll send it back after the 30 day trial period.

Similar Products Used:

Golden Tube Audio SE-40 power amp, auditioned other integrateds by Cary, Thule, Krell, NAD, Arcam Alpha 9

Power, clean sound, good soundstage

remote isn't very powerful, as stated earlier by others- ridiculously oversized speaker binding posts

Auditioned several brands- Bryston, Naim Nait, Densen Beat, VTL, NAD, Krell, Arcam, Adcom, Marantz, Nakamichi, etc. The Densen and VTL were very musical, but more expensive than the A300.

I've been using this product for about 8 months now, and remain very impressed with it. I won't belabor the points as they've been mentioned before in other posts - clean, musical, good soundstage, powerful. An added bonus, there is a sweet sounding phono stage built in.

If you are in the market for an integrated amp in the $1500 - $2000 range (or possibly more), I recommend you give the A-300 an audition with your system. In my opinion, it really does live up to all the hype, and does sound as good as amps costing considerably more.

My System:
MF A-300
Marantz CC48
Monarchy 18B (being evaluated)
Sonus Faber Concertinos
old prof. Technics turntable w/ Grado cartridge
MIT Terminator 2 speaker cables
Homegrown Audio silver interconnects (being evaluated)

Similar Products Used:

Replaced a Yamaha receiver